DN jobless rate down, state’s is up

Del Norte County's preliminary August unemployment rate was 11.1 percent, down 1.1 percent from July and 2.5 percentage points lower than a year ago.

The comparable California rate was 8.9 percent, according to the state Employment Development Department.

California's unemployment rate rose for the second consecutive month in August even as the state added more than 29,000 jobs, state officials said Friday.

The jobless rate is up nearly a half-percent since June, when it was 8.5 percent and is two-tenths of a percentage point higher than in July. When California's unemployment rate rose in July, it was the first increase since spring 2011.

"It's definitely not with the prevailing trend, which has been declining unemployment," department spokesman Kevin Callori said. "We've had two years of rate decreases."

The state has seen 26 consecutive months of job growth since the recession ended, the longest streak of any state, including the 29,100 jobs added in August.

Marin County (5.0 percent) had the lowest August rate and Imperial had the highest (26.3 percent). The comparable U.S. rate was 7.3 percent.

Total Del Norte industry employment increased by 90 jobs from July to August. Leisure and Hospitality (plus-30) and government (plus-40) led the gains. Over the year, jobs in Del Norte County are down 40.